An investigation conducted by Swedish Radio has unveiled a suspected plot orchestrated by Iran to assassinate prominent Jewish individuals in Sweden, including Aron Verständig, the Chair of the Official Council of Swedish Jewish Communities, and a dual US-Swedish citizen. The scheme reportedly involved an Iranian couple, acting as undercover agents under false identities for over five years within the country.

Aron Verständig shared his  experience with Swedish Radio, recounting a call from the Swedish Security Service in September 2021, warning him of being targeted for assassination.

The Iranian couple, arrested in the Stockholm area in April 2021 on suspicions of plotting a terrorist crime through murder, has been identified as Mahdi Ramezani and Fereshteh Sanaeifarid. Despite their arrest, specifics regarding their intended targets had not been disclosed until now, with Deputy Chief Prosecutor Hans Ihrman remaining tight-lipped about the investigation’s details.

The couple had initially entered Sweden in 2015, posing as Afghan refugees and were granted asylum in 2017 after deceiving the Swedish Migration Agency. The prosecutor’s office suggests that the couple had been dormant agents in Sweden for years before being tasked by Iran in early 2021 to execute a terror attack. Investigations indicate that Ramezani and Sanaeifarid were acting on behalf of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a military and intelligence entity that has faced international criticism and designation as a terrorist organization by the United States for its alleged involvement in violent acts abroad.

The operation’s purported objective was the assassination of three Swedish Jews, an action consistent with Iran’s history of alleged assassination plots against Jewish targets abroad, often viewed as attempts to target Israel indirectly. The couple is believed to have been activated during a trip to Iran in early 2021, where they supposedly met with IRGC operatives and received funding for their mission.

Upon their return to Sweden, the couple undertook preparatory actions such as purchasing a vehicle and collecting personal information on their intended victims. However, Swedish prosecutors faced challenges in proving the specifics of how the assassination plot was to be executed. The FBI conducted its investigation due to one of the targets holding US citizenship, but no charges have been filed in the US.

Despite the lack of prosecution, Ramezani and Sanaeifarid were not released. Instead, they were deported to Iran in 2022.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)